Bihar is a state in eastern India. This is the state where Gautam Buddha (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddha) was born. This is also the state where Nalanda University (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nalanda) used to be in the 3rd century BC. (Note that this is about the same vintage as the Alexandria Library (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Library_of_Alexandria) in Egypt). Bihar was also the seat of emperor Ashoka (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asoka). Such is the history of this state.
Fast forward to the late 1990s. Bihar was one of the 3 poorest and most corrupt states in India. While the rest of India made large strides forward in various fields, Bihar remained backward.
I was talking to a Bihari friend of mine about Bihar yesterday. And he spent quite some time disabusing me. He is a person of exceptional patience, quite knowledgeable and has an excellent command of English. He explained at length that the Bihar of today is quite different from how the state is normally perceived by the layman. And he sent me a bunch of links that provide good reading material about Bihar. I have reproduced them below for the benefit of those who are as insular as I am!
- http://www.lib.virginia.edu/area-studies/SouthAsia/bihar/wh28jl2000.html
- http://www.livemint.com/2010/01/26224100/Bihar8217s-development-a-m.html
- http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Swaminomics/entry/new-miracle-economies-bihar-poor
- http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Swaminomics/entry/backward-bihar-goes-for-the
This is another article I found later
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/Ex-IITian-starts-world-class-school-in-Bihar-village/articleshow/7419365.cms
Interesting and nice to see the change in Bihar.
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